


Heaven's Monkey Wrench

by sanctuary_for_all



Category: Lucifer (TV)
Genre: F/M, Feels, Fix-It, Fluff and Angst, Happy Ending, Kissing, Yelling For The Greater Good
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-04
Updated: 2017-03-06
Packaged: 2018-09-22 03:28:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,180
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9580517
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanctuary_for_all/pseuds/sanctuary_for_all
Summary: Chloe doesn't think much of this supposed "plan" of God's. She just wants Lucifer to come home. (Set immediately after 2X13)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I had decided I was definitely, under no circumstances, writing a Lucifer mid season fix. Then Chloe informed me I was mistaken.

"He was just... gone." Chloe stared down at her hands, trying to figure out what had happened. She could have _sworn_ things were going well between them, even though nothing had actually been _said_. Had something happened while she was in the hospital? Had she done something? Had she _not_ done something? "There were sheets over the furniture. The manager said he'd been told that Lucifer would only be reachable by phone for 'the foreseeable future.'" She swallowed, an ache in her chest that felt like it would be there for the rest of eternity. She looked up at Maze. "He's not coming back, is he?"

"I am going to kick his _ass_ ," Maze vowed, the threat somewhat lessened by the fact that she looked more upset than angry. She was pacing back and forth, hands clenched at her sides and a worried expression in her eyes. "Then I'll drag him back here, and _you_ can kick his ass. I understand him being upset, but this is just _stupid_."

"He feels betrayed," Amenadiel said quietly. Lucifer's brother was standing off to the side, arms folded across his chest and a solemn expression on his face. "When that happens, you want to get as far away from the situation as possible."

Horror sliced through the pain. "Betrayed?" She looked back and forth between them, trying to figure out what had happened. What she'd done wrong, however inadvertently. "How? Is... is it me?"

Maze looked as conflicted as Chloe had ever seen her. "It's... not your fault," she said finally, the words full of the hesitant care of someone trying to dredge a comforting lie out of a disaster. People had tried it too many times after her dad had died. "Lucifer... he just...." She turned to Amenadiel, her eyes demanding that he come up with a better lie.

But he just shook his head at her. "No more lies," he said. "I won't continue playing Father's game." He turned to Chloe, the sudden compassion in his expression almost more frightening than Maze's attempt at being comforting had been. "Besides, she's in this anyway."

Maze opened her mouth, clearly ready to argue, but the words seemed stuck in her throat. Finally, she pressed her lips together like she was in pain. "Fine." The word was less steady than it should have been. "You do it."

Chloe had no idea what was going on, but it clearly wasn't good. "Is he in trouble somehow? Are _all_ of you in trouble?" She could do something with that. She could _fix_ that. "It it your--" The rest of the question disappeared in a rush of sound.

Then... Then....

Wings. Amenadiel had just unfolded a set of wings from his back.

Chloe just stared, brain threatening to seize up over the thought she'd just had. Over what was right in front of her. Amenadiel, Lucifer's brother, had _wings_. Like the wings _Lucifer_ had claimed to have, the same way he'd claimed to be the Lord of Hell.

Wings that looked _really_ beat up, now that she thought about it. "Are you in pain?" she asked, the question slipping out before she could think about it. When he looked confused, she gestured to his wings. "They look like they hurt."

Lucifer's back had been hurt, two huge scars where he said Maze had cut his wings off. Wings his brother still had. Lucifer had asked Maze to _cut_ _his_ _wings_ _off_.

Now both Amenadiel and Maze were staring at _her_ , as if she was the strange thing in the room. "Some guy flashes you a pair of _wings_ , and _that's_ your only question?" Maze asked incredulously.

Chloe lifted a hand helplessly. "Lucifer kept saying he really was the devil. If he's a fallen angel, it makes sense that his brother would be... I guess you'd just call them normal angels."

It would be easier, she was pretty sure, if she really was in shock. She knew she should be horrified by the words coming out of her mouth, but the truth was that this was the only way it all made sense. On some level, she'd been heading toward this moment for a long time.

Maze and Amenadiel looked at each other, then back at Chloe. "I arranged for your birth," Amenadiel said solemnly. "God put you here, in this time and place, specifically so you would be in Lucifer's path."

That... didn't make any sense. If you were going to go to all the work of making sure someone was in Lucifer's life, why would it be someone like her? "Are you sure? I mean, I don't see how--"

"We're sure." Maze's voice was still funeral gentle, but firm enough to discourage any further questions. When Amenadiel looked like he was about to open his mouth, she glared him into silence before turning back to Chloe. "Lucifer thinks that what you have isn't real because God arranged it. That it's all part of some kind of plot his asshole Father is putting together."

Now Chloe felt like staring for an entirely different reason. The same brain that had so little trouble finally accepting the idea of angels immediately rejected the entire concept. "So he thinks I was _programmed_ to love him? Like I was designed to be some sort of dream girl for him?" When they nodded, she was suddenly angry at all of them. "Have none of you actually thought about this for a second? I am a _terrible_ dream girl for him. I have so much trouble having fun that when I try to be relaxed and flirty people think there's something wrong with me. The only reason I even caught his attention at all was because I was assigned a case where a friend of his was murdered. And the _last_ thing I wanted to do was fall in love with Lucifer. If I was some kind a plant from your insane Father, wouldn't I have been a hell of a lot more willing?"

She couldn't read Amenadiel's expression, but Maze's had turned oddly fragile. "You're in love with him?" she asked quietly.

Chloe's indignation disappeared, the truth of what she'd just said leaving her reeling. "Yeah," she whispered, then swallowed. "But he doesn't care." Her stomach twisted. "He doesn't trust me enough to think I'm not some kind of puppet."

Maze watched her, expression determined. "And you're just going to let him get away with that?"

Amenadiel looked torn. "Maze...."

She turned to him with another glare. " _Fuck_ your family drama. These people are _mine_." She pointed at Chloe. "You're sure God didn't whammy you?"

The anger surged back. "Seriously? You, too?"

Maze grinned back, expression savage. "That's my girl. Now go call Dan and ask him to take Trixie a few more days while I pack you a bag. We're going to go find Lucifer, you are going to kick his _ass_ for thinking you were just some stooge of his Dad's, and then we're both going to drag his ass _home_."

That sounded wonderful, actually. But there was just one problem. "What if he won't come?"

Amenadiel's lips quirked, though she couldn't tell if he was amused or rueful. "He returned to Hell for you, twice. I think he'll come back to Los Angeles."

Chloe froze as her brain processed what he'd just said. "Wait, what?" When Maze hit Amenadiel again, clearly her code for '"shut up," Chloe's eyes narrowed. "Tell me everything. Now."


	2. Chapter 2

They didn't tell her everything.

Admittedly, they told her a _lot_ \- about escapes from Hell, deals with God for Chloe's life and a basic overview of their family history with Charlotte and her most recent plan to storm heaven. (Apparently, she really was their mother, though she'd had to borrow a dead human body rather than just using her own like Lucifer and Amenadiel.) It almost _seemed_ like everything, unless you'd been a cop long enough to notice the way Maze would sometimes rephrase something in the middle of a sentence, and Amenadiel's expression would shut down a little more each and every time.

Finally, she called Maze on one of her evasions. "I can't help but notice how vague you're being on how exactly Lucifer got back to Hell. I can't imagine it's as simple as leaving the back door unlocked."

Maze hesitated a bit too long. "It's complicated."

Finally, Amenadiel couldn't take it anymore. "No, it's not." He glared at Maze before shooting Chloe a more sympathetic expression. "He died. His angelic invulnerability doesn't work when you're close to him."

Chloe went cold. She desperately wanted to argue with him, to say that made no sense, but all she could think about was Lucifer asking her to leave while he saved the two men from the poison gas. A gas that hadn't affected him, even though she'd _seen_ him get injured before. But... he'd been so shocked, when she'd shot him. As if it had never happened before.

It felt like all of the air was being sucked out of her lungs. "I'm a secret weapon," she breathed, horrified down to the depths of her soul. No wonder he'd run. "Someone could use me to hurt Lucifer."

"He doesn't _care_ about that," Maze argued, stepping forward. "He's known about the vulnerability thing for almost a year now, since back from when I still wanted to kill you. I _told_ him to stay away from you then, and he managed it for less than a day."

"He deliberately used it as part of his plan to save you," Amenadiel added. "It was my job to keep you close enough that his heart could be both stopped and restarted.'"

Chloe was still reeling. She remembered that weird period where he'd tried to avoid her, so long ago she'd long since stopped thinking about it. If _that_ had been his only reaction to the fact that she could _kill_ him, it said a lot that finding out she was a "gift" from God was enough to make him run. Part of her wondered if she should just let him go, because he was clearly safer as far away from her as possible.

But... if God had arranged for _her_ to be in Lucifer's life, how many other traps had he set up? If he wasn't _here_ , she couldn't help protect him from whatever the next danger would be. If she was going to make him vulnerable, the least she could do was be there to watch his back.  
Now she just had to convince _him_ of that fact.

"There is _no_ way you're packing my bag, but you can call your people while I call mine," Chloe said firmly, already pulling out her phone. "The sooner we get some idea of where he is, the faster we can be on the road."

Maze nodded, starting to move, then stopped and caught Chloe's arm. "Wait."

It was the sudden hesitancy in her voice that made Chloe turn around. When she saw Maze looking back at her with half a face that looked like it belonged on a zombie, her eyes had barely widened before she also noticed the way her roommate was clearly bracing herself for the worst. After that, it wasn't any work at all to make sure her voice was easy. "Well, that certainly makes some of the things Trixie said about Halloween make a lot more sense."

Maze let out a breath, radiating relief as the zombie face disappeared. "Come on," she said, suddenly all business again. "We've got a Devil to find."

000

It was surprisingly easy to track Lucifer to Las Vegas. According to Maze, Lucifer has rejected it as their home base when they'd first come to Earth, deciding it didn't have quite enough substance to be interesting for very long. Chloe wanted to tell herself that meant Lucifer had planned for his escape to be only temporary, but the more likely answer was that he simply hadn't though that far ahead. He was almost all impulse, while she'd spent most of her life trying to bury hers.

One more reason the idea of her being meant to be Lucifer's perfect woman was completely ridiculous.

Finding him _in_ Las Vegas was almost as easy. Chloe didn't want to run his credit cards - the foolish, hopeful part of her wanted to do everything she could to preserve his spot as her partner - but it turned out Lucifer Morningstar couldn't help making a splash wherever he went. He'd apparently been partying up and down the Strip since the moment he arrived in town, and a mixed-gender group of scantily-clad partiers had no trouble pointing her to the penthouse suite at Treasure Island.

Leaving Maze to find a parking place without killing anyone - she'd made her promise - Chloe flashed her badge at the manager, told him Lucifer was a witness to a case back in LA, and was granted access to the penthouse. Dread coiled low in Chloe's gut as she rode the elevator up, suddenly certain this would be one of the worst conversations of her life. She'd never been enough for anybody but Trixie, and even though Lucifer had seemed different something like this had probably been inevitable. She couldn't even try to tell herself there was no way it could make her hurt more than she did now, because she was horrifically certain it could.

But he'd gone back to Hell for her, twice. The least she could do was let him shatter her heart again.

She could hear the sound of pounding music from inside the room, and Chloe's stomach twisted at the thought of what might be going on inside. Pushing it aside, hard, she pounded on the door. When there was no response, she kept pounding. Finally, the door opened to reveal Lucifer wearing a robe and the fakest grin she'd ever seen on him, a party in full swing behind him. "Officer! If you're looking for your partner I'm afraid he's...." The rest of whatever he'd been about to say trailed into silence as he focused on Chloe's face, eyes going wide.

That was when she punched him in the stomach.

He doubled over clutching his midsection, the same way a human man would. When he straightened, however, he immediately scrambled through his pocket for a small remote and shut the music off. He turned around to the now confused guests, waving them toward the door. "Everyone out, now!" They started to protest, then immediately gasped and fled toward the exit like they were being chased. She couldn't see what Lucifer did - his back was to her - but she suspected she already knew.

Even after they cleared out, Lucifer didn't move. The line of his shoulders were so tense she imagined it had to hurt. "You too, detective." His voice was hard, but there was something running beneath the surface she couldn't quite read. "Go away."


	3. Chapter 3

Chloe had braced herself for a response like that. “Not a chance,” she shot back, calling on all her anger for strength. “You owe me an explanation.”

He grabbed a half-full glass off the nearest flat surface, draining its contents in a single swallow. He kept his gaze on the window rather than her, the lights of the Strip spread out beneath them. “I told you.” His voice was bitter. “You wouldn’t understand.”

“What part?” Her own voice had gone sharp. “The bit where your brother’s wings look like someone ran them through a wood-chipper, the fact that Maze can put on half a zombie face whenever she wants, or the fact that you _left me_ because you’re pissed off that _God_ decided when and where I should be born?” 

At “your brother’s wings,” Lucifer jerked around to stare at her like someone had yanked him. There was something more intense than shock on his face, as if the smallest shift in her expression was a matter of life and death. Chloe faltered, not sure what he was looking for. “There’s been some show and tell since you disappeared,” she explained.

Lucifer sucked in a sharp breath, expression closing off. “What do you need to know?”

“Why you _left_.” Her voice wavered, and she pressed her lips together while she fought for control. Because of her, Lucifer had needed to go back to the place he hated more than anywhere else. _Twice_. “The poisoning was the second time you went to Hell for me. If you were sick of needing to—“

“I didn’t care about that,” he snapped. “What I care about is the fact that none of this—“ he waved a hand back and forth between them “—is real.”

Frustration welled back up again. “Maze and your brother said the same thing, but I don’t even know what that means.” She threw her hands up. “Do you really think I was some sort of specially designed _lure_ for you?”

His jaw tightened. “Well, at first I thought you were in on it.”

That _hurt_ , a quick stab to the heart. It was a moment before she dared trust her voice again. “Fuck you, too.”

His expression shifted, a silent acknowledgement that he had gone too far. “I was wrong about that,” he admitted finally. “But it still means you were a set-up.”

“For what reason?” she shot back. “Because if it was to make you go back to Hell, then I’ve already done that _twice_ and it doesn’t seem to phase you much. What else could me being in your life possibly do to you?”

The look he sent her was bitter. “Break me.”

Those words, coming from him right now, were ironic enough to set the same bitterness coiling in Chloe’s gut. “Well, you’re doing a pretty good job at breaking me right now, and I don’t see God pulling the strings here.”

His brow lowered as if she’d just said something utterly unbelievable. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

The dismissal stung, adding more heat to her words. “I’m not.” She jabbed a finger in his direction. “You know, if any of you supposedly all-powerful beings would just think for five seconds you would realize that I am the most poorly designed lure on the planet, especially for someone like you. I have two modes – boring stick-in-the-mud, or complete dork. You wouldn’t have paid me five seconds of attention if I hadn’t been working your friend’s case, and you know it. There’s no way someone _made_ me like this and expected it to be something you couldn’t resist.”

Lucifer’s expression turned uncertain, as if he’d realized there was more going on here than he had thought. “Detective….”

But Chloe wasn’t finished yet. “But you? It makes a hell of a lot more sense that you were designed as my perfect lure. That you were designed to be the one man _I_ couldn’t resist.”

His expression shut down again. “That’s impossible.”

“Why?” She felt her eyes fill, swiping angrily at the wetness. “My entire life, I have never been enough for anyone but my father and Trixie. I’m always too much, or not enough, or say or do something at exactly the wrong moment. But with you….” She swallowed. “You’ve never once looked at me like there was something wrong with me. No matter how weird I get, or how much of a buzzkill I am, or how intense I get, you just… accept it. I feel _safe_ when I’m with you, like I don’t have to worry about watching myself so hard all the time. Like I can just let myself be.” She looked back at him, no longer fighting the tears escaping down her cheeks. “You are the second best thing that ever happened to me, Lucifer, right after Trixie. If I had any say about _any_ of this, I would have _jumped_ at the opportunity to be born the same time you were here. God wouldn’t have needed to do anything to me.”

He looked frozen, like she was causing him pain but he couldn’t make himself move. “I’m the _Devil_ ,” he ground out, voice full of too many emotions for her to read. “No one, _anywhere_ , actually _wants_ Satan for longer than a quick fuck. I’m the stuff of _nightmares_.”

“You keep saying that, and it keeps not being true!” When she moved closer, he took a defensive step back. “I _know_ you!”

There was something deeper than pain in his eyes now, the look a person got when they were staring down the barrel of a gun they knew was going to end their life. “Oh, really?”

An instant later, he _changed._

She’d prepared for this moment since she stepped into the elevator, mentally gearing herself not to flinch at even the most terrifying, disgusting imagery. So when she finally saw it, the red, craggy face and eyes that flared with something more physical than mere anger, it was so tame she couldn’t stop her brows from drawing together. “That’s it?” she asked, utterly confused. “That’s what supposedly makes everyone you flash it at scream and run away from you?”

Lucifer looked just as baffled as she did, the red face flickering back into the normal one. “Did you not see it?”

“It was red. Maybe like your face is made of lava, but the part around your eyes is closer to bone white.” When his eyes went wide, face blanking out with shock, she made an exasperated noise. “What? Did you really think you were going to scare me just because your face looked different?”

He staggered back, clearly reeling from what she’d just told him. His shock was even more profound than Maze and Amenadiel’s had been, as if he couldn’t reconcile what he’d just seen and heard with everything he knew about the world. “How?”

“I keep _telling_ you, Lucifer, I _know_ you.” Her voice cracked. “It’s what’s in people’s hearts that make them scary, not their faces, and though you can be an absolute dick sometimes I’ve never doubted for a second that your heart is _good_.”

Lucifer was trembling now, and not even clenching his fist was enough to make it stop. “And you really don’t understand why I have trouble believing you’re real,” he breathed. “Even after that.”

“No, what I don’t understand is why you’re so tangled up over this when you went back to _Hell_ because of me. _Twice_.”  She felt wrung out, guilt and worry surging back in through the hole she’d ripped in her own defenses. “I would never hurt you, _ever_ , but I keep putting you in harm’s way anyway. Why don’t you care about _that_?”

He started shaking his head before she’d even finished speaking. “I told you, Hell doesn’t matter.” He said it like it was a simple statement of fact, with none of the hurt or bitterness from before. “I’d do it again if I had to. Or worse.”

Now she was the one who was staggered, and so utterly baffled by the idea that she was worth going to Hell for that there was only one possible response to give. “ _Why_?”


	4. Chapter 4

Lucifer stared at her as if the question didn’t make any sense, but whatever he saw in her face caused realization to slowly flood his. “You really don’t understand how extraordinary you are, do you?” he asked finally, as if the very concept baffled him.

She lifted her chin. “If this is about God supposedly arranging—“

“No.” His voice was utterly gentle as he cut her off, expression just a little sad. “I knew you were a wonder before I even imagined Father had anything to do with it.”

It still sounded too much like a goodbye. Chloe’s chest ached. “That’s not—“ She stopped herself this time, squeezing her eyes shut a moment before looking at him again. “Thank you, Lucifer, but what I’ve been trying to tell you is that _you’re_ special. I’m lucky to have _you_ in my life.”

Lucifer’s brow lowered. “That’s not—“ Then it was his turn to stop, as if a thought had hit him. Understanding slowly dawned. “It’s not just that you don’t understand how special you are, is it?” he asked, sounding astonished. “You don’t believe it when someone tries to tell you.”

Why were they still talking about this? It wasn’t important. “Well, you don’t believe it when I try to tell you how much you’re worth, either,” she countered, not entirely sure whether or not they were still fighting. “So you should understand where I’m coming from.”

If she’d thought the light had dawned before, she’d had no idea. He looked astonished, wondering and just a little staggered, the face of a man who’d just had the world open up to him. “Oh,” he said softly, sounding impossibly moved. “You _know_.” He let out a shaky breath. “You know what it’s like.”

Chloe’s throat went tight. “Lucifer….”

She didn’t have the words for anything more than that, but Lucifer didn’t seem to need them. He crossed the distance he’d worked so hard to keep between them, lifting a hesitant, gentle hand to cradle her cheek. When she leaned into the touch, curling her hand around his wrist, he looked like it was the most amazing thing that had ever happened to him. “To answer your question, Detective,” he said finally, voice rough with emotion. “I went to Hell for you because you are everything to me that Heaven never was.” His voice was quiet, but utterly serious. “If you wanted it, I would lay the world at your feet.”

Chloe’s eyes filled, but she didn’t try to fight off the tears this time. It would have meant letting go of Lucifer, and that was the last thing in the world she wanted to do right now. “All I want is for you to come home,” she whispered.

Lucifer's own eyes were wet, shining with something close to awe. "I'd forgotten what that word even meant until I found you."

There was nothing to do for that but kiss him, stretching upward to meet his lips the same way she had back on the beach. This time, though, they opened under hers without a moment of hesitation, and she let go of his wrist so she could slide both hands around the back of his neck. The kiss was like lightning, a bright trail of light and fire that blazed through her entire body, but when his other arm tightened on her back it was the steady warmth of the sun itself.

When they broke apart, they were both shaking. Lucifer pressed his forehead against hers, expression making it clear he was fighting to process all the emotion he was feeling. Chloe laid a hand against his cheek, feeling a fierce surge of protectiveness rise up. “I won’t let Him hurt you, Lucifer,” she whispered. “I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

Lucifer pulled her into his arms, pressing his face against her neck and holding on for dear life. “If keeping you is the price,” he murmured, “I’ll take the pain.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, holding on just as hard. “You shouldn’t have to.”

“Det—“ He stopped, pulling away only enough to smile down at her. His face was aglow, as if he’d just realized something that delighted him. “Chloe.” He said her name as if doing so was a pleasure. “I should start calling you Chloe, shouldn’t I?”

Her own lips curved, happiness bubbling up inside her. “I’d like that.”

“Chloe.” The word was soft, utterly gentle as she brushed his thumb over her cheek. “I know pain. I’ve had millennia of it. But before you, I had no idea what joy felt like.” His smile turned faintly sheepish. “It’s a little terrifying, to be honest.”

She felt the same way, and had since the moment on the beach. But everything was less frightening when Lucifer was with her. “You think I’m not scared?” She curled her fingers in the edge of his robe, keeping him close. “But we’ll figure it out together, the same way we do everything else.”

His eyes were wet, and there was still more than a little wonder shining out of them. But there wasn’t a shred of hesitation or doubt in his voice. “Because this is real.”

Chloe couldn’t stop her smile, even though her eyes were filling. “Yes, it is.”

They gravitated toward one another for another kiss, slow and sweet as the best alcohol buzz. Everything that wasn’t Lucifer blurred at the edges, enough so that it took her awhile to process what the ringing sound was. Even then, it wasn’t until the sound stopped and started again that her brain cells collected themselves enough to remind her why it would be a very bad idea if she didn’t answer.

She pulled herself away with immense reluctance, scrambling for her phone. “Shit, it’s Maze. I was supposed to call her and let her know if she needed to come upstairs and kick your ass.”

Lucifer’s lips quirked, and he held his hand out. “If I may?” When she handed him the phone, he answered it and held it to his ear. “Maze, darling.” He winced, holding the phone away from his ear. Chloe couldn’t make out was Maze was saying, but the fact that she was shouting was obvious. Chloe smiled, and Lucifer shot her an amused look as he carefully put the phone back to his ear. “No, no, you are absolutely correct – I deserve to be hung upside down and fed to fire ants.” He paused, as if listening to her response. “Thankfully, my balls are still very much in place, but you’ll be pleased to note that she did punch me in the stomach.” Another pause. “Oh, it most definitely hurt. You would have been proud.”

He smiled a little at whatever she said. “Actually, I was hoping you’d take some personal time and let me drive Chloe back to Los Angeles in a few days.” He met her gaze, eyebrows lifted in question. _Is that alright?_ he mouthed. When she nodded, her smile widening, he grinned back at her before returning his attention to whatever Maze was saying. “Yes, she was quite persuasive. I am duly chastened.” His expression softened at whatever she said. “As much as I would like to torment you over the fact that you just came suspiciously close to an apology, it’s best that I knew.” He met Chloe’s eyes again, expression softening even further. “No, I definitely won’t make that mistake again.”

When he hung up, he handed the phone back to Chloe with a pleased expression. “Now, we need to get that jacket of yours off and get you—“ He cut himself off, looking around the hotel suite with sudden distaste. “Not here, though. No, this is definitely not going to work.” He immediately started ushering her toward the door. “We should leave, now. I’ll rent us another room.”

“Lucifer.” She stopped him with her hands on his arms, giving her an amused look. “As long as there’s not a girl or guy in the back room you’re planning on going back to, it’s okay.” She squeezed his hand. “Besides, you probably want to get some clothes first.”

Lucifer looked down at his robe, then back up. “Ah, yes.” He looked determined. “We’re still getting another room, though. You deserve as clean a slate as I can manage to get you.” He darted forward, dropping a quick but intense kiss on her lips. “Stay _right_ here. I’ll be right back.”

She grinned helplessly at him, happiness making her feel light. “I’m not going anywhere.”


	5. Chapter 5

Lucifer had never been one to kick partners out of bed in the morning – if nothing else, he was always open to morning sex if everyone involved had time. But he had never stayed curled protectively around them, watching them sleep in the morning light and wondering how he could ever let them go again.

He delicately brushed a strand of hair away from Chloe’s forehead, torn between wanting to wake her up and being oddly afraid to break the moment. He no longer worried that she was some specially designed creature of his Father’s – at least, not more so than any other human. Only someone who understood him could have realized the effect Chloe would have on his heart, that they could understand each other on a level he had only just realized. As his Father certainly didn’t qualify, his choice of Chloe must have been fortuitous accident. Or... or....

_I would have jumped at the opportunity to be born the same time you were here. God wouldn’t have needed to do anything to me._

He leaned down, laying his lips against her forehead. She stirred as he pulled away, opening her sleep-fogged eyes to look up at him. They lit as they focused on him, filling with a warmth and wonder that only she had ever directed at him. “You’re still here,” she murmured, sounding almost awed. She reached up, touching his face. “I was afraid I’d dreamed it.”

Lucifer still couldn’t quite wrap his mind around the idea that she considered him to be the miracle. “So sex with me is the stuff of dreams, is it?” He tried to make the question light, but he couldn’t keep the emotion out of his voice.

Her lips curved. “If I remember correctly, you’re the one who got a little teary-eyed.”

He had. Making love, it turned out, elevated sex to something he never would have imagined. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he murmured, bending down to give her a proper good morning kiss.

She tightened her arms around him, holding on even after they’d broken apart. “It’s good you don’t lie.” Her smile took on a teasing edge. “You’re really bad at it.”

He opened his mouth, about to volley back something appropriate, but her hands were sliding down his back. She’d touched them a dozen times the night before, neither of them realizing it, but he couldn’t stop himself from tensing up as her fingertips brushed against the edge of his wing scars.

She went still as well, realizing. “May I?” she asked quietly, all the gentleness she possessed in her voice.

All he could do was nod, burying his face against her neck. She smoothed her hands over the scars, her touch as tender as he’d imagined it would be that first night. “I won’t let him hurt you again,” she whispered, pressing her lips against his hair as she repeated her vow from the night before. “I promise you, I’ll do everything in my power to make sure he never hurts you again.”

He couldn’t speak, too much emotion tangled up in his throat. However his Father had found her, Lucifer knew that this had been the purpose of putting Chloe in his path. To let him know _this_ , then snatch it away again when he lost her. Even if she never left, even if _he_ never left, even if they fought off the entire hosts of hell, heaven and Earth together, her mortality made it inevitable.

The Lord of Hell was forever breakable now.

Not wanting to put any of that into words, he rolled them both so that she was above him. She looked so brave, so determined, that it was impossible not to pull her down for another kiss. When they broke apart, she gave him a stern look. “I’m serious. I don’t care how omnipotent he’s supposed to be – if your mother can be stopped, so can he.”

“If anyone can, it’s you,” he murmured, letting himself imagine it for a moment. It seemed impossible that anyone would take on the Supreme Creator for him, but she’d seemed just as stunned that he would go back to Hell for her.

Her expression softened instantly. “Us,” she murmured, bending down for another kiss.

Lucifer lost himself in the kiss, suddenly certain of only one thing. When she died, he would force his way back into heaven. Whatever his Father’s reaction would be, however happy it would make his mother, none of it mattered. Chloe would be there, so he would be there as well.

When the kiss ended, he pulled her close again. Love could break you, but it could also give you the strength you needed to break everything else for the sake of the one you loved. His Father had given him his heart, but Lucifer wondered if he was truly prepared to deal with the consequences.

He hoped Chloe was prepared. She had chased him across state lines, tears in her eyes, and had claimed him for the whole of eternity. “I’m sorry I left,” he breathed, the apology stranger on his tongue than even a plea.

She nuzzled closer. “Just don’t do it again.”

His chest clenched. “You do realize you’re never getting rid of me now, right?” His voice was rough. “I’m immortal, so not even death is enough to escape me.”

He felt her smile against his skin. “I’m looking forward to it.”

**Author's Note:**

> Come check out my new original fiction on my [blog](http://jennifferwardell.blogspot.com) or say hi to me on [Tumblr](http://sanctuaryforalluniverses.tumblr.com)


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